The municipal councilor from "Save Sofia" Plamena Terziradeva announced that the chief architect of Sofia Bogdana Panayotova has no intention of completing the graphic part of the Standard for Street Greening, without which it cannot be implemented.
„We received an official response that it is not considered appropriate to assign the development of the graphic part, contrary to the will of the Municipal Council. This practically blocks the implementation of the Standard, even though it is the one that should guarantee better care for Sofia's green system," Terziradeva explained.
She also emphasized that the Standard had been "in limbo" for a long time, because all that remained was to shape the visual part of the document, which could be used by all municipal and private employees involved in maintenance. "The Standard contains generally valid practices - such as proper pruning and planting technologies that guarantee the survival of trees." She emphasized and added that its delay is explained by "upcoming amendments" to the Regulation on the Green System.
"There are no such amendments - arch. Panayotova has submitted a report to Mayor Terziev on behalf of a working group, which describes the proposed changes from the various stakeholders, but it is unclear when a specific text will be proposed to the Municipal Council for discussion,” Terziradeva explained. “It turns out that this Standard is stubbornly delayed, and without it Sofia cannot maintain its greenery healthy and sustainable,” she concluded.